Mobile Live Cam

In 1519, Alonzo Pineda sailed into Mobile Bay, named it the Bay of the Holy Spirit and mapped the location. This is the first record we have of a European vessel being in Mobile Bay. Mobile is named after the Mauvilla Indians (Mauvilla is the Indian word for paddler), who lived along the banks of Mobile Bay. The name was spelled Mabila by the Spanish and eventually came to be Mobile. (The name Alabama means "brush gatherers" in Choctaw and refers to the Alibamu tribe.) French, English, Spanish, Confederate and American flags have all flown over the city of Mobile since it was first settled in 1702. Mobile is located in Southwest Alabama on Mobile Bay, approximately one-half hour from both the Mississippi and Florida state lines. Mobile encompasses 1,248 square miles.